Bamboo charcoal is created when older bamboo plants are heated. The powder is used to create charcoal bamboo fabric. Traditional “bamboo fabric” has been under fire for being falsely advertised as environmentally friendly, natural etc., when in fact the bamboo is processed into a rayon fabric that some think doesn’t retain any of the properties of bamboo.

Bamboo charcoal is broken into chips, then ground into a fine powder, which is compounded, then spun into yarn. The fabric is said to be porous, absorbent, odor absorbing, moisture wicking, anti bacterial and much more. I have only used charcoal bamboo inserts in Lil Helper Diapers, but I was quite pleased with it. It was super soft, absorbent, and the darker color hides stains.

I don’t know very much about the chemical process of making the fiber, but it is my understanding that the resulting “charcoal bamboo” fabric is a polyester, much like traditional “bamboo” fabric is in fact rayon.

Maria is the mother of 3, writing about cloth diapers & going green. You'll often find her juggling her preschooler and typing 1-handed in between sips of cold coffee.
Maria works with many companies within the cloth diaper industry and beyond, providing social media management, product development and other services.

Maria wants to live in a world where cloth diapers are the norm and moms can make parenting choices without judgement. When she’s not chasing her 13, 9 and 6-year old kids around, you might find her checking out the latest gadgets, organizing something (again) or exercising in the fresh air. Read More »